Label printer with touchscreen-formatting of characters

ABSTRACT

A label printer has a touchscreen for displaying and inputting label data, and comprising at least one input area. The label printer also has a hardware keyboard for inputting label data, and comprising at least one hardware key. The label printer also has control means arranged to control printing means for printing a label in accordance with label information. The label information is derived from a combination of label data input via the at least one hardware key of said hardware keyboard and label data input via the at least one input area of said touchscreen.

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is the US National Phase under 35 USC 371 ofinternational patent application PCT/EP2009/062563, having aninternational filing date of Sep. 28, 2009, and claims priority toUnited Kingdom GB 0817702.4, filed Sep. 26, 2008.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present invention relates to a printing device and in particular toa stand-alone label printer for printing an image on a label.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

Known tape printing apparatus are disclosed in EP-A-322918 andEP-A-322919 (Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha) and EP-A-267890(Varitronic). The printers each include a cassette receiving bay forreceiving a cassette or tape holding case. In EP-A-267890, the tapeholding case houses an ink ribbon and a substrate tape, the lattercomprising an upper image receiving layer secured to a backing layer byan adhesive. In EP-A-322918 and EP-A-322919, the tape holding casehouses an ink ribbon, a transparent image receiving tape and a doublesided adhesive tape which is secured at one of its adhesive coated sidesto the image tape after printing and which has a backing layer peelablefrom its other adhesive coated side. With both these apparatus, theimage transfer medium (ink ribbon) and the image receiving tape(substrate) are in the same cassette.

It has also been proposed by the present applicants in, for example,EP-A-578372 to house the ink ribbon and the substrate tape in separatecassettes.

In all of these cases, the image receiving tape passes in overlap withthe ink ribbon to a print zone consisting of a fixed print head and aplaten against which the print head can be pressed to cause an image totransfer from the ink ribbon to the image receiving tape. There are manyways of doing this, including dry lettering or dry film impression, butthe most usual way currently is by thermal printing where the print headis heated and the heat causes ink from the ink ribbon to be transferredto the image receiving tape.

In other known tape printing apparatuses, so-called direct thermal tapesare used, in which an image is created directly onto the direct thermaltape without the interposition of an ink ribbon cassette. Elements of aprint head are heated, and the heat causes chemicals within the directthermal tape to react and produce an image in or on the tape.

The devices of the type described above are provided with a keyboardwhich enables a user to enter characters, symbols and the like to forman image to be printed by the tape printer. The keyboard usually hastext character keys and number keys for entering letters and numbersrespectively, plus some function keys which, among other things, operatemenus and allow printing attributes to be set.

For a printer to be used with the English language, a maximum of 26 textcharacter keys are required, one for each letter of the alphabet.However, if the printer is to be used with other European languages,keys which allow accented characters to be printed must be provided. Forexample, in the French language, “é” and “è” are required in addition tothe ordinary “e”. In some European languages, a significant number ofaccented characters are required. This results in at least two problems.

Firstly, many machines are provided with additional text character keysto the standard 26 within the keyboard so as to enable the user toeasily select the accented characters. This results in more space beingtaken up on the keyboard with text character keys, which means either alarger keyboard is required, which may not be convenient, particularlyfor a compact hand-held machine, and/or less space is available on thekeyboard for function keys, which means that more keystrokes may berequired to execute certain functions. Alternatively the printer may beprovided with keys which represent a plurality of characters/symbolswhereby the user may need to use a large number of keystrokes to accessmenus to enable selection of the required character, which is timeconsuming and complicated for the user.

Similar problems exist with other languages where there are a largenumber of characters such as Chinese or Japanese.

Another problem is that different keyboard layouts are used in differentcountries which may increase the number of different printers which needto be provided. This can lead to an increased manufacturing cost.

The keyboards of known devices often include keys which are operable toselect a portion of label data for printing onto a medium, and to alterthe printing position relative to the medium at which the portion oflabel data is to be printed. In such devices, the user may need to use alarge number of keystrokes to select the portion of label data, and afurther large number of keystrokes to alter the printing position.

Often a display is provided in known devices, which display presents tothe user one or more selectable options. If the options are presented ina list, a large number of keystrokes may be required to move up/down thelist until the desired option is found. If the options are presented atvarious positions within the display, it may be confusing and thus timeconsuming for the user to determine which key on a keyboard of thedevice he/she has to press to select the desired option.

“Stand-alone” label printers can be distinguished from “label printersystems”, which comprise a printer connected to a PC or other computingdevice. In such label printer systems, a user creates or edits a labelfor printing using a PC, and then sends print data to a printer to causethe printer to print the print data onto a label medium. In such labelprinter systems, the user will view a display of the PC to create alabel, rather than a display of the printer. Also, the label-editingsoftware used for creating the label will be stored and run on the PC,rather than the printer.

In contrast, stand-alone label printers are operable independently of aPC or other computer to create and print a label. Although somestand-alone printers are connectable to a PC or other computer toreceive some data, they are nevertheless operable independently of thePC or other computer to create a label for printing, since label-editingsoftware used for creating the label is stored and run on the labelprinter itself. Stand-alone label printers thus usually include anintegral display via which the user can view an interface of thelabel-editing software.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

A first aspect of the present invention may provide a label printerhaving a touchscreen for displaying and inputting label data, andcomprising at least one input area; a hardware keyboard for inputtinglabel data, and comprising at least one hardware key; and control meansarranged to control printing means for printing a label in accordancewith label information; wherein the label information is derived from acombination of label data input via the at least one hardware key ofsaid hardware keyboard and label data input via the at least one inputarea of said touchscreen.

The label information may comprise information defining a character. Thecharacter may comprise an accented character. The label information maycomprise information defining a symbol. The label information maycomprise information defining a format.

The control means may be arranged to initiate a data input mode, when auser provides an input to the touchscreen by touching a point within aportion of the touchscreen that is capable of displaying data. Thehardware keyboard may comprise a hardware key associated with an item ofdata. The control means may be arranged to control said touchscreen todisplay said item of data at said point within the portion, when theuser subsequently presses said hardware key.

The portion of the touchscreen may be a portion capable of displaying arepresentation of at least part of a label to be printed. The labelprinter may have print means for printing said item of data onto alabel.

Optionally, when the control means initiates the data input mode, thecontrol means is arranged to control said touchscreen to display to theuser a prompt to enter data. The prompt may comprise a cursor, such as ablinking cursor, displayed at said point within said portion of thetouchscreen.

A second aspect of the present invention may provide a label printerhaving a touchscreen for receiving an input from a user, a portion ofthe touchscreen being capable of displaying data; a hardware keyboardfor inputting data, said hardware keyboard comprising a hardware keyassociated with an item of data; and control means; wherein the controlmeans is arranged to initiate a data input mode, when the user providesan input to the touchscreen by touching a point within said portion, andthe control means is arranged to control said touchscreen to displaysaid item of data at said point within the portion, when the usersubsequently presses said hardware key.

The portion of the touchscreen may be a portion capable of displaying arepresentation of at least part of a label to be printed. The labelprinter may further have print means for printing said item of data ontoa label.

Optionally, when the control means initiates the data input mode, thecontrol means is arranged to control said touchscreen to display to theuser a prompt to enter data. The prompt may comprise a cursor displayedat said point within said portion of the touchscreen. The cursor may bea blinking cursor.

A third aspect of the present invention may provide a method of printinga label, comprising inputting label data via at least one hardware keyof a hardware keyboard of a label printer; inputting label data via atleast one input area of a touchscreen of the label printer; and printingthe label in accordance with label information, wherein the labelinformation is derived from the combination of the label data input viathe at least one hardware key of said hardware keyboard and the labeldata input via the at least one input area of said touchscreen.

The method may comprise initiating a data input mode in dependence onreceiving an input from a user at a point within a portion of thetouchscreen of the label printer that is capable of displaying data. Themethod may comprise receiving a signal from a hardware key of thekeyboard of the label printer, the hardware key being associated with anitem of data. The method may comprise displaying said item of data atsaid point within the portion of the touchscreen.

A fourth aspect of the present invention may provide a method ofoperating a display of a label printer, comprising initiating a datainput mode in dependence on receiving an input from a user at a pointwithin a portion of a touchscreen of the label printer; receiving asignal from a hardware key of a keyboard of the label printer, thehardware key being associated with an item of data; and displaying saiditem of data at said point within the portion of the touchscreen.

Optionally, initiating the data input mode includes displaying on thetouchscreen a prompt to the user to enter data.

A fifth aspect of the present invention may provide a label printerhaving memory configured to store data defining plural differentgraphical control panel layouts, each of said layouts comprising anarrangement of input areas of a respective graphical control panel;means for selecting one of said graphical control panel layouts; and atouchscreen configured to display a graphical control panel with inputareas arranged on the display in accordance with the selected graphicalcontrol panel layout.

The means for selecting one of said graphical control panel layouts maycomprise a section of the touchscreen that is configured to send asignal to control means, when a user touches the section of thetouchscreen.

The section of the touchscreen may include plural areas, each of whichis associated with one of said graphical control panel layouts. Thetouchscreen may be configured to display the graphical control panellayout associated with one of the areas, when the user touches thatarea.

At least one of the layouts may comprise an arrangement of input areascorresponding to respective different letters of the alphabet. At leastone of the layouts may comprise an arrangement of input areascorresponding to accented letters of the alphabet, punctuation marks,currency symbols, numbers, or graphic symbols.

At least one of the layouts may comprise a data layout input area. Thelabel printer may be configured such that, when a part of the display atwhich the data layout input area is displayed is touched by a user, thelayout of label data to be printed onto a medium is changed. The layoutmay be changed by adding a border to the label data, by changing thefont, style or size of text included in the label data, by changing theposition of text or an image included in the label data, or by applyinga template to the label data.

At least one of the layouts may comprise a data field input area. Thelabel printer may be configured such that, when a part of the display atwhich the data field input area is displayed is touched by a user, adata field to which text or images are addable to create label data forprinting onto a medium is displayed on the display.

The touchscreen may be configured to display a representation of labeldata to be printed onto a medium. The touchscreen may be configured todisplay a representation of label data to be printed onto the medium asa first label and label data to be printed onto the medium as a secondlabel.

The touchscreen may be configured to display a representation of aposition at which the medium is to be cut by cutting means of the labelprinter.

The label printer may be configured such that, when a part of thedisplay at which one of the data input areas is displayed is touched bya user, the representation of label data is changed. The touchscreen maybe configured to display the representation of label data adjacent tothe data input areas.

A sixth aspect of the present invention may provide a label printerhaving control means and a touchscreen, wherein the touchscreen includesa first screen section configured to display a representation of labeldata to be printed onto a medium; and a second screen section comprisingan input section configured to send a signal to the control means when auser touches a part of the second screen section.

The first screen section of the touchscreen may be configured to displaya representation of the label data with a modified attribute, independence on the control means receiving the signal. An attribute ofthe label data to be printed onto the medium may be changed independence on the control means receiving the signal. The attribute maycomprise one of font type, font style, font size, text alignment andtext direction.

The control means may be configured to control a print head of the labelprinter to print the label data onto the medium, in dependence on thecontrol means receiving the signal.

The first screen section may be configured to display a label template,in dependence on the control means receiving the signal.

The first screen section may be configured to display a representationof a position at which the medium is to be cut by cutting means of thelabel printer, in dependence on the control means receiving the signal.

The first screen section may be configured to display a representationof label data to be printed onto the medium as a first label and labeldata to be printed onto the medium as a second label.

The first screen section may be configured to display a data field towhich text or images are addable to create the label data for printingonto the medium, in dependence on the control means receiving thesignal.

The first screen section may be configured to send a second signal tothe control means when a user touches a part of the first screensection. The first screen section may be configured to display a cursorat said part of the first screen section, in dependence on the controlmeans receiving the second signal.

The signal may be sent to the control means when the user strokes thepart of the input section.

The input section may be configured to send a different signal to thecontrol means when the user touches a different part of the inputsection.

A seventh aspect of the present invention may provide a label printerhaving memory configured to store a list of plural data entries; controlmeans; and a touchscreen; wherein the touchscreen includes a firstscreen section configured to display information associated with a firstset of the plural data entries, and a second screen section configuredto send a signal to the control means when a user touches a part of thesecond screen section; and wherein the control means is configured tocontrol the first screen section of the touchscreen to displayinformation associated with a second set of the plural data entries, independence on the control means receiving the signal.

The second screen section of the touchscreen may be configured to sendthe signal to the control means when the user strokes the part of thesecond screen section.

The signal sent to the control means may be representative of the speedat which the user strokes the part of the second screen section.

The control means may be configured to control the first screen sectionof the touchscreen to display information associated with a second setof plural data entries relatively close to the first set of plural dataentries in the list, when the signal is representative of a stroke witha speed above a threshold. The control means may be configured tocontrol the first screen section of the touchscreen to displayinformation associated with a second set of plural data entriesrelatively distant from the first set of plural data entries in thelist, when the signal is representative of a stroke with a speed at orbelow the threshold.

The control means may be configured to control the first screen sectionof the touchscreen to display information associated with a second setof plural data entries relatively close to the first set of plural dataentries in the list, when the signal is representative of a stroke witha speed below a threshold. The control means may be configured tocontrol the first screen section of the touchscreen to displayinformation associated with a second set of plural data entriesrelatively distant from the first set of plural data entries in thelist, when the signal is representative of a stroke with a speed at orabove the threshold.

The list of plural data entries may comprise a list of one of: labeltemplates, font types for text to be included in label data for printingonto a medium, label border styles to be printed onto a medium, andlabel data to be printed onto a medium. The list of plural data entriesmay comprise a list of file names.

The touchscreen may include a third screen section which is configuredto display label data to be printed onto a medium that is associatedwith one of the plural data entries, when the user touches a part of thefirst screen section of the touchscreen. The part of the first screensection may be a part at which information associated with said one ofthe plural data entries is displayed.

The touchscreen may include a fourth screen section which is configuredto display label data to be printed onto a medium.

One of the plural data entries may be additional label data to beprinted onto the medium. The fourth screen section may be configured todisplay the additional label data, when the user touches a part of thefirst screen section that displays information associated with said oneof the plural data entries.

An eighth aspect of the present invention may provide a label printerhaving control means; and a touchscreen configured to display, at afirst position within a screen section, a representation of a label datafield to be printed onto a medium; wherein the control means isconfigured to control the touchscreen to display the representation ofthe label data field at a second position within the screen section,when a user touches a part of the touchscreen and maintains contact withthe touchscreen until releasing contact with the touchscreen at adifferent part of the touchscreen.

The touchscreen may be configured to display information representativeof the width of a label to be printed. The information representative ofthe width of the label may be changed, when the touchscreen displays therepresentation of the label data field at the second position within thescreen section.

The touchscreen may be configured to display, at a third position withinthe screen section, a representation of a second label data field to beprinted onto the medium. The touchscreen may be configured to displaythe representation of the second label data field at a fourth positionwithin the screen section, when the touchscreen displays therepresentation of the label data field at the second position within thescreen section.

A ninth aspect of the present invention may provide a label printerhaving input means for inputting label data to be printed; a screen fordisplaying the label data; control means connected to the input meansand to the screen and arranged to control printing means for printing alabel in accordance with the label data; and a home button which, whenoperated by a user, causes a home screen to be displayed on the screen.

The control means is preferably arranged to cause the home screen to bedisplayed whenever the home button is operated.

The home screen may comprise at least one of: an area selectable by theuser to start making a new label; an area selectable by the user to viewan open file screen, via which open file screen the user is able toselect a label file to open in order to recall saved data from memory;an area selectable by the user to edit label data shown on the homescreen; an area selectable by the user when they want to save label datato memory; and an area selectable by the user to initiate alteringdevice settings.

The home screen is preferably displayed when the label printer isswitched on, or shortly thereafter.

The screen of the ninth aspect of the present invention is preferablycomprised in a touchscreen, but may alternatively comprise a screen thatis not comprised in a touchscreen. Where the screen is comprised in atouchscreen, the input means may comprise portions of a touch panel ofthe touchscreen that are selectable by being touched by a user. Thus, atouchscreen may comprise the input means for inputting the label data.Alternatively or additionally, and whether or not the screen iscomprised in a touchscreen, the input means may comprise a hardwarekeyboard with a series of hardware keys.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

Reference will now be made by way of example to the accompanyingdrawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a first label printing device using a twocassette set system;

FIG. 2 is plan view of the second label printing device using a onecassette set system;

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic sketch showing the control circuitry in anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a diagram of a resistive touchscreen used as an input deviceaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 a shows the construction of part of a resistive touchscreenaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 5 a to 5 k show exemplary input screens in embodiments of thepresent invention;

FIGS. 6 a to 6 f show exemplary input screens in further embodiments ofthe present invention;

FIGS. 7 a to 7 j show exemplary input screens in further embodiments ofthe present invention;

FIGS. 8 a to 8 e show exemplary input screens in embodiments of thepresent invention;

FIGS. 9 a to 9 f show exemplary input screens in embodiments of thepresent invention; and

FIG. 10 shows another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Some embodiments may provide a printer which enables a user to accessaccented characters in a number of languages using a small number ofstraightforward steps.

Some embodiments may be such that one printer can be provided for anumber of different countries, with the software modifying the functionof the printer appropriately. This may lead to decreased manufacturingcosts. Additionally or alternatively, it may be viable to provideprinters for specific language or countries where volumes may berelatively low without having to significantly increase productioncosts.

Some embodiments of the invention may provide a simpler interface forlanguages such as Chinese and Japanese having a larger character set.

Some embodiments may provide a printer which enables the user to accessa plurality of characters, symbols and functions using a simple andstraightforward input method.

Some embodiments may provide a printer with a flexible, ergonomic andsimple system by which a user is able to alter the printing positionrelative to a medium of label data.

Some embodiments may provide a printer with a simple and straightforwardsystem by which a user can navigate quickly to a desired option.

Label printers that embody the present invention are “stand-alone” labelprinters, as they are operable by a user independently of a PC or othercomputer to create and print a label. Although some embodiments of thestand-alone label printer of the present invention are connectable to aPC or other computer or device to receive e.g. software upgrades, labeltemplates, print data, etc., they are nevertheless operable by a userwithout being so connected to edit or create a label for printing, sincethe label-editing software used for creating the label is stored and runon the label printer itself.

The stand-alone label printer may comprise a display formed integrallywith the label printer, via which display the user can view an interfaceof the label-editing software to create or edit a label. The stand-alonelabel printer may also comprise a series of input keys, which can besoftware keys displayed on the integral display and operable by a usertouching a touchscreen overlying the display, and/or hardware keysintegral with the label printer. Such a touchscreen is preferablyintegrally formed with the body of the label printer, such that thetouchscreen is not a separate device connected wirelessly or with wiresto the label printer. Thus, data defining a label to be printed can becreated and/or manipulated in the stand-alone label printer itself,based on inputs made by the user via the input keys, and the data neednot be sent to the label printer from a PC or other computer or otherdevice connected wirelessly or with wires to the label printer.

Some embodiments of the present invention may comprise a portable orhandheld stand-alone label printer. Other embodiments may comprise alarger stand-alone label printer which is optimally placed on a surface,such as a desk, before being operated.

FIG. 1 shows in plan view a first label printing device which has twocassettes arranged therein. Typically, this label printing device 1 is ahandheld or small desktop device which is powered by batteries at leastpart of the time. Alternatively the label printing device may be mainspowered. The upper cassette is located in a first cassette receivingportion 26 and contains a supply of image receiving tape 4 which passesthrough a print zone 3 of the tape printing device 1 to an outlet 5 ofthe tape printing device 1. The image receiving tape 4 comprises anupper layer for receiving a printed image on its upper surface and hasits other surface coated with an adhesive layer to which is secured areleasable backing layer. The upper cassette 2 has a recess foraccommodating a platen 8 of the tape printing device 1, and guideportions 22 and 24 for guiding the tape through a print zone 3. Theplaten 8 is mounted for rotation within a cage moulding 10.Alternatively the platen could be mounted for rotation on a pin.

The lower cassette 11 is located in the second cassette receivingportion 28 and contains a thermal transfer ribbon 12 which extends fromthe supply spool 30 to a take-up spool 32 within the cassette 11. Thethermal transfer ribbon 12 extends through the print zone 3 in overlapwith the image receiving tape 4. The cassette 11 has recess 14 forreceiving a print head 18 of the label printing device 1 and guideportions 34 and 36 for guiding the thermal transfer ribbon 12 throughthe print zone 3. Print head 18 is moveable between an operativeposition shown in FIG. 1, in which it is in contact with the platen 8and holds the thermal transfer ribbon 12 and the image receiving tape 4in overlap between a print head 18 and the platen 8 in an inoperativeposition in which it is moved away from the platen 8 to release thermaltransfer ribbon 12 and image receiving tape 4. In the operativeposition, the platen 8 is rotated to cause the image receiving tape 12to be driven past print head 18 and the print head 18 is controlled toprint an image on the image receiving tape 4 by thermal transfer of inkfrom the ribbon 12. Each of the printing elements on the print head 18is activatable separately and is activated in accordance with thedesired image to be printed. The label printing device 1 has a lid(which is not shown) which is hinged along the rear of the cassettereceiving portions 26 and 28 and which covers both cassettes when inplace.

A DC motor 7 (see FIG. 3) continuously drives the platen 8. The platenis arranged to drive the image receiving tape 4 through the print zone 3by the actuation of its own rotation. In other embodiments, transport ofthe image receiving tape across the print head can be done by othermeans, such as by a separate driven roller of the printer or of thecassette, or by a pair of cooperating rollers positioned on oppositesides of the tape, or by other means.

The image is printed by the print head 18 on the image receiving tape ona column by column basis with the columns being adjacent one another inthe direction of movement of the tape 4.

FIG. 2 illustrates in plan view a cassette bay of a second printingdevice 1′ which uses a one cassette system. Like reference numerals areused for those parts which are also shown in FIG. 1. The cassette bay isshown by the dotted line 40. The cassette bay 40 includes a thermalprint head 18 and a platen 8 which cooperate to define a print zone 3.

The print head 18 is pivotable about a pivot point so that it can bebrought into contact with the platen 8 for printing and moved away fromthe platen 8 to enable the cassette to be removed and replaced as in thefirst embodiment. A cassette inserted into the cassette bay 40 isdenoted generally by reference numeral 44. The cassette 44 holds asupply spool 46 of image receiving tape 4. The image receiving tape 4 isguided by a guide mechanism (which is not shown) through the cassette44, out of the cassette 44 through an outlet O past the print zone 3 toa cutting location C. The same cassette 44 also has an ink ribbon supplyspool 48 and an ink ribbon take up spool 50. The ink ribbon 12 is guidedfrom the ink ribbon supply spool 48 through the print zone 3 and takenup on the ink ribbon take up spool 50. As with the first embodiment, theimage receiving tape 4 passes in overlap with the ink ribbon 12 throughthe print zone 3 with its image receiving layer in contact with the inkribbon 12. The platen of this second embodiment is also driven by amotor 7. The motor rotates to drive continuously the image receivingtape through the pint zone 3 during printing. In either of theembodiments, it is possible that the tape be driven in a step wisemanner by a stepper motor.

An image is printed on the tape fed out from the print zone to thecutting location C which is provided at a location in a portion of thewall of the cassette 44 which is close to the print zone 3. The portionof the wall on the cassette 44 where the cutting location C is definedis denoted by reference 52. A slot 54 is defined in the wall portion 52and the image receiving tape 4 is fed past the print zone 3 to thecutting location C where it is supported by facing wall portions oneither side of the slot 54.

The second label printing device 1′ includes a cutting mechanism 56including a cutter support member 58 which carries a blade 60. The blade60 cuts the image receiving tape 4 and then enters the slot 54. Itshould be appreciated that the first embodiment will usually alsoinclude a cutting mechanism.

Basic circuitry for controlling the tape printing device 1 of FIG. 1 orthe tape printing device 1′ of FIG. 2 is shown in FIG. 3. There is amicro controller unit (MCU) 600, a non-volatile memory 602 which is forexample a read only memory (ROM) or a flash type of memory. The flashtype of memory may be used in place of, or in addition to the read onlymemory. A volatile memory comprising a random access memory RAM 604and/or display RAM is also provided. The MCU 600 is connected to receivelabel data input to it from a data input device such as a touch panel608 of a touchscreen 612 via a touch panel controller 606. Inalternative embodiments, the data input device may be a hardwarekeyboard including plural keys. The MCU 600 outputs data to drive thedisplay 610, which together with the touch panel 608 form thetouchscreen 612, to display a label to be printed (or a part thereof)and/or a message for the user. Additionally, the MCU 600 also outputsdata to drive the print head 18 so that the label data is printed ontothe image receiving tape to form a label. Finally, the MCU 600 alsocontrols the motor 7 for driving the platen. The MCU 600 may alsocontrol the cutting mechanism 56 of FIG. 2 or a cutting mechanism of thedevice shown in FIG. 1 to allow a length of tape to be cut off. Inalternative embodiments at least part of the cutting mechanism may bemanually operated.

A touch panel 608 is shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 4 shows a resistivetouchscreen system. In this embodiment the touchscreen system isintegral with the printing device. There are other systems that are usedto recognise a person's touch that are well known in the art and couldbe used in place of the resistive system and still be within the scopeof some embodiments of this invention. Such systems include thecapacitive touchscreen system, in which a local change of capacitance issensed and used to determine the point at which the screen was touched,and the surface acoustic wave touchscreen system. However reference willonly be made to the resistive touchscreen system as an example of anembodiment with reference to FIG. 4. The resistive touchscreen systemconsists of a glass (or other suitable material such as plastics) panel42 overlying the LCD display or any other type of display 41. The glasspanel 42 is covered in a uniform resistive coating 43. A thick polyestercover sheet 46 is suspended over the resistive coating 43, separated bysmall transparent insulating dots 45. The surface of the coversheetfacing the glass panel 42 is covered in a conductive coating 44. Theopposite outer side of the coversheet 46 is covered in a scratchresistant coating 47.

Four wires are arranged within the touchscreen panel 608. Wires 660 and760 are arranged at the respective side edges of one of the conductivesurface 44 and the resistive layer 43, as shown in FIG. 4 a. Wires 860and 960 are arranged at the respective top and bottom edges of the otherof the conductive surface 44 and the resistive layer 43. The resistivelayer 43 is biased at the supply voltage (for example +5V or 3.3V)through four drive lines (not shown), and the coversheet is groundedthrough a high resistance. When the screen is touched the conductivecoating 44 on the coversheet 46 is pushed against the resistive coating43 on the glass panel 42, making electrical contact an electricalcurrent runs through the conductive and resistive metallic layers. Thevoltage produced between the point of contact between the conductivelayer 44 and resistive layer 43 and between the wires 660, 760, 860 and960 are detected by the controller. Wires 660 and 760 detect the voltageproduced by the touch along the x axis, whist wires 860 and 960 detectthe voltage produced along the Y axis. The wires 660, 760, 860 and 960are connected to analogue to digital converter (not shown) which formspart of the touchscreen controller 606. The analogue to digitalconverter converts the voltages into a digital signal. The controller606 translates the signal into x and y coordinates to be sent to the MCU600. Operation of a resistive touchscreen is well known to the skilledperson, and so the arrangement of FIG. 4 a will not be described in anyfurther detail.

First embodiments of the present invention will now be described withreference to FIGS. 5 a to 5 j.

FIG. 5 a shows part of a label printer including a touchscreen 1000, apower on/off button 2000, a home button 3000, and a print button 4000.The touchscreen 1000 in FIG. 5 a shows a “home” display or screen, whichis presented to the user when the printing device is switched on bypressing button 2000. It is to be noted that, whenever the user pressesthe home button 3000, the “home” screen shown in FIG. 5 a is displayed.

The touchscreen includes four sections. Section A is a header andincludes information 101 indicating the mode the printer is currentlyworking in or the name of a label currently shown in the display andopen for editing. In FIG. 5 a, the header includes text informationspelling the word “Label”. This tells the user that they are in alabel-creating mode and the label being created has not yet been savedwith an associated file name. In other embodiments, the information 101may be text spelling the phrase “unsaved label”, or similar, to indicatethat the label being created has not yet been saved with an associatedfile name. If the label is saved, the information 101 may be textspelling the phrase “label: file name”. As will be seen in otherFigures, the header can display alternative information indicative of adifferent function, mode or displayed screen, in dependence on theinformation displayed in other sections of the display.

Section B is configured to display a representation of label data to beprinted onto the medium. In this embodiment the display is a WYSIWYG(what you see is what you get) display. In some embodiments, such asthat shown in FIG. 5 a, Section B also displays an indication 202 of thewidth of the medium. In this embodiment this indication of the width isgiven both as a number 202, and also as the height “X” of rectangle 203relative to the height “Y” of the boundary 204 of Section B. In FIG. 5a, no print data has yet been entered and so the rectangle 203 is empty.

The user is presented with several options which are selectable bytouching an area within the control panel of section C of the screen, asdescribed below. Section D of the screen includes a number of graphic“tabs” 401 to 403, which are respectively labelled “Text”, “Insert”, and“Format”. Each of the tabs is selectable by touching the area of SectionD bounded by that tab. So, for example, if the user selects the “Text”tab 401, the controller 606 generates the coordinates of the position ofthe touch and sends them to the microprocessor 600. In some embodiments,stored in the ROM 602 is a series of look up tables each relating todifferent selection screens. The look up table referred to by theprocessor 600 is the one which relates to the screen currently beingdisplayed. Thus when screen 5 a is displayed look up table correspondingto screen 5 a is referred to. Coordinates corresponding to those whichfall within area 401 of Section D of screen 5 a are stored within thelook up table and instruct microprocessor 600 to display the screen ofFIG. 5 b. When the coordinates of the touch correspond to any of thosewhich are stored in the look up table as falling within area 401 ofSection D of screen 5 a, the display changes to that as shown in FIG. 5b. The tab “text” represents a screen area. In other embodiments withoutthe lookup tables, if the touch input coordinates fall within this area,the code jumps to a routine that corresponds to the function “text”. Thescreen is thus divided up into objects, of which the object “text” is anexample. The software detects if an object has been selected bycomparing the input coordinates with the object's coordinates.

In FIG. 5 b, Section A and Section B still show the header information101 and the representation 201 of label data to be printed onto themedium, as in FIG. 5 a. However, Section A now also includes areas 102,103 and 104. Area 102, 103 and 104 are, respectively, a label save inputarea, a label preview input area, and a device settings input area,which correspond to areas 304, 305 and 306 in FIG. 5 a. These will bediscussed below. Also, Section C of the display now includes a differentcontrol panel from that shown in FIG. 5 a. The tabs from Section D ofFIG. 5 a are now shown at the top of Section C in FIG. 5 b. Theleft-most tab, labelled “Text” is highlighted. The other two tabs areselectable, but not currently selected.

In other embodiments, a “back” key or “back” input area is provided oneach screen presented to the user. By touching the screen within theback input area, the display is changed to present to the user thescreen viewed immediately before the current screen. In someembodiments, such a back key is provided on most or every screenpresented to the user. In some embodiments the back key is a hardwarekey positioned on the printer device.

The control panel in Section C in FIG. 5 b is a visual representation ofa keyboard 300 including an arrangement of keys 311, or data “inputareas”. A data input area is a portion of a display that includesinformation associated with a function. When the user touches the screenwithin the portion of the display, a signal is sent from the touchscreento the MCU 600. The MCU 600 then processes the information from thetouch in a similar manner as previously described. In the scenario shownin FIG. 5 b, if the user touches the portion of the display thatincludes the character “A”, then the MCU 600 causes the touchscreen topresent the character “a” within the representation of the label data tobe printed, in Section B of the screen. The letter “a” is positioned inSection B at the position of a cursor 205. The cursor 205 then moves tothe right of the newly-added letter. If the user subsequently touchesthe character input area labelled “Z”, then a “z” is placed at the newposition of the cursor 205, and the cursor again moves to the right, andso on. In some embodiments the cursor 205 blinks, i.e. appears anddisappears cyclically, so a user can quickly determine the position ofthe cursor 205 when viewing the screen.

A user can choose to capitalise a letter to be added to the text stringshown in section B by pressing the shift key 302 shown in FIG. 5 b.After the shift key 312 has been touched, any subsequent data inputareas 311 associated with characters which are touched by a user resultin the respective associated character being presented in section B in acapitalised form. Thus the letter “a” would be presented as “A”.Non-capitalised letters can be added to the data in Section B bypressing the shift key 302 again, which “deactivates” the mode. In otherembodiments a key marked with the text “a->A” may be provided which,when selected, results in subsequently selected letters to be added tothe representation in Section B in capitalised form.

Further keys are shown within section C, i.e. the keyboard, of thetouchscreen shown in FIG. 5 b. When the backspace key 313 is touched bythe user, the character to the left of the cursor 205 in section B isdeleted. When the space key 314 is touched, a space is added to the datain Section B at the position of the cursor 205. When the carriage returnkey 315 is touched, the cursor 205 moves down a line in Section Bcreating a new line. Touching character keys 311 after the cursor 205has so moved down in Section B results in characters being added to anew line of label data.

In FIG. 5 b the keys (input areas) of the keyboard representing lettersof the alphabet are arranged in the “QWERTY” layout. The user is able toselect a different keyboard layout with a different layout of such keys.The ROM 602 stores data defining plural different graphical keyboardlayouts, as well as plural other graphical control panel layouts, suchas that shown in FIG. 5 a. Each stored layout includes an arrangement ofdata input areas of the respective graphical control panel or keyboard.When at any screen, the user can press home button 3000 and be presentedwith the screen shown in FIG. 5 a. Within Section C of the screen inFIG. 5 a is device settings area 306. Device settings area 306 includesa picture which indicates to the user the function “alter devicesettings”. By touching the screen within device settings area 306 ofFIG. 5 a the user is taken to a further screen (not shown) whichincludes means for selecting one of the graphical keyboard layouts. Inthis embodiment the means for selecting is a series of further areas ofthe further screen. Each of the further areas is associated with one ofthe graphical keyboard layouts, and in some embodiments includesinformation indicative of the graphical keyboard layout with which it isassociated. For example, one of the further areas may include the word“AZERTY”. When the user touches that further area, a signal is sent tothe MCU 600 and the microprocessor records in the ROM that the graphicalkeyboard to be displayed in future is one with data input areas (keys)arranged in the “AZERTY” layout. In another embodiment each of thefurther areas includes an indication of a language and is associatedwith a graphical keyboard layout. When the user touches a further areaincluding an indication of a certain language, a signal is sent to theMCU 600 and the MCU records in the ROM the graphical keyboard associatedwith the language.

In one alternative embodiment, the label printer may be pre-programmedwith the required layout.

Returning to FIG. 5 b, the keyboard 300 includes twenty six characterinput areas associated with the twenty six letters of the Latin, orRoman, alphabet. In various embodiments of the invention, other keyboardlayouts stored in the ROM 602 or flash memory include keys associatedwith characters of other alphabets, such as the Greek and Russianalphabets, and characters utilised in written Chinese and Japanese, i.e.keyboard layouts that enable the user to enter text in these charactersets. Such control panels, or keyboards, can be presented in Section Cby carrying out steps similar to those above for selecting the “AZERTY”keyboard layout.

Keyboard 300 includes punctuation data input area 316. When this istouched by the user, the user is presented with a punctuation controlpanel which overlays part or all of the other information on the screen.This punctuation control panel is not shown in the figures. Thepunctuation control panel includes one or more areas corresponding toone or more respective punctuation symbols. When the user touches one ofthese areas in the punctuation control panel, then the punctuation markillustrated within that area in the punctuation control panel is addedto the string of text shown in section B. After the selected punctuationmark has been selected in this way, the punctuation control panel thendisappears from view.

Keyboard 300 also includes numeric data input area 317. When this istouched by a user, then the user is presented with a numeric controlpanel which includes ten selectable areas, each of which corresponds toa respective one of numbers 0 though to 9. On touching one of these tenareas, the numeral or number associated with that area is added to thedata in section B of the touchscreen. The numeric control panel thendisappears. In alternative embodiments, the user may touch several ofthe areas in the numeric control panel in series in order to add astring of numerals to the data shown in section B. In this alternativeembodiment, the numeric control panel only disappears when the userpresses an eleventh selectable input area in the numeric control panel.Such an eleventh selectable area may have the text “CLOSE” presented tothe user within the eleventh selectable area.

Keyboard 300 includes currency data input area 318. When this is touchedby a user, then a currency control panel is presented to the user whichincludes one or more selectable areas with one or more respectivecurrency symbols shown within those areas. The user can select one ofthose areas to add a currency symbol to the data in section B of thetouchscreen.

Keyboard 300 also includes accent data input area 319. Similarly to thenumeric input area, when the accent input area 319 is touched by theuser, then the user is presented with an accent control panel whichincludes plural accented character data input area (not shown). Each ofthe accented character data input areas has an accented character, suchas the characters “é” and “á”, shown within that area. When the usertouches such an area, then an accented character associated with thetouched accented character data input area is added to the string oftext in section B. In embodiments, when the user touches accent datainput area 319 they are presented with a suggestion box on the screendisplaying a list of selectable accented characters, which list mayinclude only the most commonly used accented characters.

In many embodiments the representation of the label data is displayedadjacent the data input areas. It is to be noted that in this embodimentof the invention, the representation of the label data is above some ofthe data input areas, i.e. those 311, 312 within Section C, and belowsome of the data input areas, i.e. those 102, 103, 104 within Section A.In other embodiments the relative locations of the representation andthe data input areas can of course be different to this.

FIG. 5 c shows the result of a user entering the label data “LoreNuyens” into the printer, using the data input areas 311 and space key314 of keyboard 300. In Section B of the screen displays arepresentation 201 of the label data to be printed onto a tape. Eachrespective keystroke changed the representation of the label data, sinceeach keystroke added a new character or a space to the data.

The user may apply formatting to the label data by touching the tablabelled “Format” in Section C of FIG. 5 c. The microprocessor 600processes the information from the touch in a similar manner aspreviously described and changes the display to change the visualrepresentation of the control panel within section C of the screen intoa visual representation of a control panel within which label formattingfunctions are selectable. This is shown in FIG. 5 d.

In FIG. 5 d the control panel 350 includes plural data layout inputareas, such as keys 321, 324 and pointer 323 a. When a part of thedisplay at which one of the data layout input areas is displayed istouched by the user, the layout or an attribute of the representation201 of label data to be printed on the medium in Section B is changed.Additionally, the layout or an attribute of the label data, when it isprinted onto the medium, is correspondingly changed. In this way, therepresentation in Section B is a WYSIWYG representation, i.e. therepresentation includes data formatted in the same way as data on aresultant printed label would be formatted.

So, if the user touches area 321 of section C in FIG. 5 d, then adrop-down menu including a list of different available character fontsis presented to the user. The user can subsequently select one of thosefonts, and the text in the representation 201 in section B of thetouchscreen is revised so as to be presented in the newly-selected font.Area 322 of section C shows the current font of the text. In order toincrease the size of the font shown in section B, the user must touchthe scrollable pointer 323 a and then drag the pointer 323 a rightwardsalong the scale 323 b. By “drag” it is meant that the user touches apoint on the screen and then maintains contact with the touchscreenwhile moving their finger or other input device (e.g. a stylus) alongthe screen. Once the desired font size has been selected, the userwithdraws their finger/stylus from the touchscreen. To reduce the fontsize, the pointer 323 a is similarly moved leftwards along the scale 323b. In an alternative embodiment, the scale may be orientated in anup/down direction.

In some embodiments the scale 323 b includes an indication of the fontsize (e.g. 12 pt, 14 pt) associated with each of the notches on thescale, i.e. the size that would be selected if the pointer 323 a waspositioned at each of those respective notches. It is also possible insome embodiments to select a font size by touching a point along thescale 323 b, rather than by dragging the pointer 323 a to the requiredpoint.

Character size can alternatively also be selected by a drop-down menu,in other embodiments, similarly to the way in which font type isselectable as just described.

Within area 324 of section C of the touchscreen in FIG. 5 d are sevenselectable data layout areas, or keys. By touching one of these sevenkeys, the user is able to perform a respective associated formattingfunction to the text within the representation in section B of thedisplay, and thus the text that will be printed onto a resultant label.The seven selectable keys in area 324 of section C in FIG. 5 d areassociated with the following respective formatting functions:emboldening the text, making the text italic, giving the text a blackoutline with a white fill, making the text bold, giving the text ashadow, striking through the text, and rotating each of the charactersof the text by 90° such as to produce a vertical label.

Within area 325 of section C of the touchscreen in FIG. 5 d are threeselectable keys which, when touched by the user, alter the justificationof data shown in section B. The leftmost key left-justifies the data(i.e. biases the data to the left of Section B), the rightmost keyright-justifies the data, and the middle key centralises the data withinsection B of the display. These justifying functions also alter thejustification of the data that will be printed on a resultant label.

If the user touches key 326 within section C, then the text included inthe representation in section B (and the result printed text) ismirrored about a horizontal axis. Similarly, if the user touches a pointwithin key 327 of section C, then the text shown within section B (andthe resultant printed text) is mirrored about a vertical axis.

Finally, when the user touches a point within area 328 of section Cshown in FIG. 5 d, then the user is presented with a drop-down list ofborders and shading which can be applied to the label data and thus tothe printed label. An example of such a drop-down list is shown in FIG.5 e. The user can select a border to apply to the label data, and hencethe resultant printed label, by touching the associated area of thedrop-down list shown in FIG. 5 e. Immediately after the user hasselected the required border, the drop-down list disappears and sectionB of the display shows the selected border applied to the label data inWYSIWYG style. See FIG. 5 f, which is the resultant display if the userfaced with the drop-down list in FIG. 5 e selected the bottom-mostborder, i.e. the rounded border. An indication of the selected border isgiven in area 329 of Section C, as well as in the representation 201 inSection B. It is to be noted that the representation 201 of the labeldata in FIGS. 5 e and 5 f is different to that in FIG. 5 d, but theprinciple of operation of the drop-down list is the same.

For those options which are selected by the dropdown menu, the label maybe arranged to change when the user selects the particular option,before the dropdown menu has been closed. For example, the user may movethe pointer or his finger down the menu, with the displayed labelchanging as the user changes between options.

Returning to FIG. 5 d, in this example the user decides to embolden andenlarge the text in Section B, and apply a different font to it. This isperformed as described above. The resultant display presented to theuser is shown in FIG. 5 g.

Section D of the screen in FIG. 5 g includes two input areas, or keys411, 412, labelled “Done” and “Cancel”, respectively. If the users arenot happy with the label data they have created, they touch key 412 andthey are returned to the home screen as shown in FIG. 5 a. Therepresentation 201 of the label data in Section B of the screen in FIG.5 b does not include any text or images to be printed.

If the users are happy with the label data they have created, they touchkey 411 and they are then returned to the home screen as shown in FIG. 5h. Section B of the screen in FIG. 5 h includes the representation ofthe label data just created. Section B also shows a representation 206of a position at which the tape is to be cut by cutting means of theprinter. Other embodiments may not include this representation 206. Indifferent embodiments the cutting means can vary. The cutting means maybe a single blade configured to pass through the tape and either hit ananvil or enter a slot. Alternatively, the cutting means may be a pair ofblades that come together to cut the tape in a scissor action. Othercutting means are also considerable, without departing from the scope ofsome embodiments of the present invention. The representation in SectionB includes label data 201 a to be printed onto the tape as a firstlabel, and label data 201 b to be printed onto the tape as a secondlabel. In alternative embodiments the representation only includes thedata 201 a just created and thus the data to be printed onto the tape asa first label.

Label data 201 b currently does not include any text or images. If theuser wishes to create a second label, they touch the screen withinSection B within the rectangle 203 b surrounding the label data 201 b tobe printed onto the tape as a second label. (In embodiments in whichonly the data 201 a to be printed onto the tape as a first label isshown, a key labelled “Multi label” or similar may be touched by theuser to create an additional label in a multi-label user interface,which additional label would be printed in series after the firstlabel). When they touch the screen within Section B, a second signal issent to the MCU 600 in a similar fashion to that which has beenpreviously described. The second signal is different from a signal sentto the MCU 600 when a different area of the screen is touched, thusallowing the MCU 600 to determine which portion of the screen has beentouched. As a result of touching the screen within the rectangle 203 bin Section B, the user is presented with the screen shown in FIG. 5 band can create another label. When they later touch the “Done” key 401in FIG. 5 b, they are returned to the screen shown in FIG. 5 h, exceptit will differ since the label data for the second label will be shownas a representation 201 b within rectangle 203 b in Section B of FIG. 5h. If they instead hit the “Cancel” key 402 in FIG. 5 b, they would bereturned to the screen shown in FIG. 5 h without any label data inrectangle 203 b.

Thus, depending on where the user touches the screen, a different actionis initiated. Information associated with that function is displayed tothe user in the portion of the screen which is touchable to initiate thefunction.

Returning to FIG. 5 h, if the user wants to save the label data forfuture re-use, they must touch input area 304 within Section C of FIG. 5h. This input area includes a representation of the save functionassociated with the input area, that representation being a floppy disk.After touching area 304 in FIG. 5 h, the MCU 600 processes theinformation from the touch as described above and changes the display sothat the screen shown in FIG. 5 i is presented to the user.

A preview of the created label is shown within Section E of the screenof FIG. 5 i. Section E includes some of the label data from therepresentation 201 a shown in Section B of FIG. 5 h. Section A of thescreen in FIG. 5 i includes information 101 indicating that the printeris currently working in save mode, i.e. the save control panel ispresently displayed. Section B of FIG. 5 i includes an indication of adefault name for the label, under which reference the label can be savedin memory. The default name is the same as the text within the labeldata. The user can change the name by touching the screen in area 102 ofSection A. In other embodiments, area 102 may comprise a different icon,such as one including the word “rename”. In embodiments, the user canchange the name by touching the default name included within Section Bof FIG. 5 i.

After choosing to rename the label, the user is then presented with thescreen shown in FIG. 5 j, which includes a keyboard in Section C. Afterentering a new name via the keys on the keyboard 300, the user touchesthe “Done” button 411 in Section D and is returned to the screen in FIG.5 h.

A list 335 of previously-saved labels is shown within section C. Thislist includes file names both of labels previously created by the userof the printing device, and also of labels which were created and savedduring manufacture of the printing device. If the user touches part ofthe display where the list 335 is shown, then label data associated withthe list item positioned at the point at which the user touches thedisplay is shown in Section E, i.e. a preview of the label data is shownto the user. The user can scroll up the list by touching area 331, andcan scroll down the list by touching area 332. Alternatively, the usercan “drag” the slider 333 along the scroll bar 334 to scroll up and downthe list 335. Scrolling may also be done by clicking and draggingquickly on the list 335 itself, rather than on the slider 333. Thescrolling action of the present invention will now be described in moredetail.

The plural file names are plural data entries which are stored within amemory. The memory in this embodiment is ROM 602 in the printer itself,but in other embodiments it may be provided in a device connected to theprinter, such as a memory card. The display shown in e.g. FIG. 5 idisplays in list 335 information associated with a first set of theplural data entries, i.e. a first set of file names. When the usertouches key 331 or key 332, which are at a different part of the screento the list 335, the touchscreen sends an associated signal to a controlmeans, which in this embodiment is the MCU 600. As a result, anddepending on which of the two keys 331, 332 was pressed, the MCU 600controls the display such that the list 335 in Section C shows a secondset of the plural data entries, i.e. another set of file names. In someembodiments, some of the first set of data entries may be the same assome of the second set of data entries. In other embodiments the secondset does not include any of the data entries of the first set. Theslider 333 is moved along the scroll bar 334 by “dragging”, as discussedabove. In other words the user “strokes” the touchscreen. This sends anassociated signal to the microprocessor 600 from the touchscreen.

In some embodiments, the signal thus sent to the MCU 600 isrepresentative of the speed at which the user strokes the display. Insome embodiments, the MCU is configured to control the touchscreen todisplay information associated with a second set of plural data entriesrelatively close to the first set of plural data entries in the list,when the signal is representative of a stroke with a speed above athreshold; and information associated with a second set of plural dataentries relatively distant from the first set of plural data entries inthe list, when the signal is representative of a stroke with a speed ator below the threshold. In some embodiments the threshold isconfigurable by the user.

If the user touches a point within area 431 of section D of FIG. 5 i,then the newly-created label is saved to the ROM 602. If the label has afile name that is unique, i.e. not already assigned in the memory, thenthe file is saved as a new file in the ROM 602. A progress bar is shownin section F of the screen in FIG. 5 i, to indicate what capacity of theROM 602 is still available for saving labels thereto.

The user is then presented with the screen shown in FIG. 5 k. Note thatin Section A of this screen there is included information 101 indicativeof the file name of the label just saved and now open on the screen,namely the words “Lore Nuyens”.

If the user does not wish to save a particular set of label data, butwould prefer to save a particular combination of label attributes, thenthe user can touch the screen within area 336 of section C to “check”the tick box. When the user subsequently touches area 431 of section D,then only the formatting data associated with the created label date issaved in the ROM 602. In this example, a file would be saved in the ROM602 including the attributes: “Frankfurter” font, bold text, and a sizeof text associated with the fifth notch from the left on the scale 323 bof FIG. 5 d.

If the user does not wish to save the label data or the attribute data,then the user can touch a point within area 432 of section D of FIG. 5 iwhich will return the user to the screen shown in FIG. 5 h withoutsaving the label or attribute data.

Before or after label data has been saved in the memory, the user canpreview what the created label would look like when printed by touchingarea 305 in Section C of FIG. 5 h. The user is then shown a full-screenrepresentation (not shown) of the label data. If the text or data of thelabel is longer than the width of the screen, the preview scrolls acrossthe screen in some embodiments. A similar preview can be seen bytouching area 103 in FIG. 5 b. Alternatively, if the text or data of thelabel is longer than the width and/or height of the screen, the label ispartially previewed and a user can move the previewed label over thescreen by dragging on the screen or by using a scroll bar in a similarmanner to the way described above.

Before or after label data has been saved in the memory in this way, theuser can print the label using the label printer. In order to do this,the user presses button 4000 to the right of the display. In otherembodiments, the print function could be activated by touching aparticular area of a Section of the screen. Either way, the MCU 600 thenprocesses the information from this button press or screen touch anddrives a printing mechanism of the printer, to print the label data ontoa tape. After the label data has been applied to the tape, the tape iscut at a position corresponding to the position of the indicator 206shown in section B of FIG. 5 h.

It is to be emphasised that in this embodiment of the present inventionthe format of the label data included within Section B of the display issubstantially the same as the format of the data which is printed ontothe medium, such as label tape, after the printing operation has beeninitiated. That is to say that label display information used to producethe representation of the label has a substantially similar arrangementto the label print data which is sent to the printhead of the printerwhen producing a real label. In other embodiments, the print data may besuch as to result in a printed label with a format different to thatdisplayed in the representation.

Another feature of embodiments of the present invention will now bedescribed with reference to FIGS. 6 a to 6 f.

FIG. 6 a shows the screen which is presented to a user when they touchthe area 303 in Section C of FIG. 5 a to recall a set of saved data fromthe ROM 602. Similarly to the save screen shown in FIG. 5 i, a list 335of file names associated with saved labels is presented to the user inSection C of the screen. When a user selects one of the file names fromthe list 335 by touching a part of screen overlying the file name, thena preview of the label data associated with the file name is shown inSection E of the screen in FIG. 6 a. See, for example, FIG. 6 b. In 6 ban indication 501 that a saved file includes both label data andformatting data is shown in Section E. Section A of the screen includesan indication 101 to the user that they are currently in the “open file”screen. Just as a user could choose to save only attribute informationassociated with label data, as discussed above, in the screen shown inFIG. 6 a the user is given the option to only recall attributeinformation associated with a saved label by checking the tick box 336in Section C. Ticking this box enables the user to create a new label,perhaps with different text to the selected label, in the same style asthe selected label. When the user has selected a label file name toopen, he or she touches area 461 of Section D. They are then presentedwith the screen shown in FIG. 6 c. To return to the home screen withoutopening a file, the user instead touches area 462 of Section D of FIG. 6a.

In embodiments, the user may also be able to “double tap” a label filename in the list 335 to open that file and arrive at the screen shown inFIG. 6 c. Indeed, the user may be able to double tap any selectableoption in any presented screen in order to access another screen, ratherthan selecting the option and then tapping “OK” or “Done” as isdescribed at several parts of this description.

With reference to FIG. 6 c, the home screen is shown with the selectedlabel file open and the associated label data available for editing. Arepresentation 201 of the label data is again given in Section B.Section A again includes an indication 101 of the file name of the filewhich is now open. The user can edit the label data by touching the area401 which is associated with the tab labelled “Text”. This presents thekeyboard to the user again, as shown in FIG. 6 d.

The user can overwrite the label data by dragging on the screen over therepresentation 201 of the label data shown in Section B. The process ofdragging was described above and will not be described again in theinterest of keeping the description brief. The label data is thenhighlighted, as shown in FIG. 6 d. Instead of selecting all of therepresentation, the user could have instead only selected a portion ofthe representation for overwriting. The extent of selection is dependenton the start point, extent and end point of the dragging motion. Withthe representation 201 of the label data thus selected, the user canoverwrite the label data for printing by touching the keys 311 on thegraphic keyboard. The dollar sign “$”, numerals and punctuation mark “.”are added by touching the currency data input area 318, numeric datainput area 317, and punctuation data input areas 316, respectively, andselecting the desired characters as described above.

When the user wishes to save the revised label they can enter the savescreen as previously described. See FIG. 6 e. In this example, since thelabel name 201 in Section B is the same as a label name included in thelist 335 of label names in Section C, the user is presented with thescreen shown in FIG. 6 f when they touch button 471 of FIG. 6 e. Herethey are given the option as to whether or not they wish to overwritethe previous label data associated with the file name “Price tag”. Ifthe user does not wish to overwrite the label data, they touch area 441of Section D of the screen in FIG. 6 f. If they are happy to overwritethe data, they touch area 442 instead.

Another feature of embodiments of the present invention will now bedescribed with reference to FIGS. 7 a to 7 j.

FIG. 7 a shows the home screen as previously described. Apreviously-created representation 201 of label data to be printed onto atape is shown in Section B. Section A includes an indication 101 of thefile name of the file which is now open, with which file the label datais associated. To create a new label, the user touches area 371 ofSection C. Similarly to as described above, the area 371 includesinformation indicative of the function associated with the area 371—inthis case a blank page to indicate creating a new label. After touchingthis area, the user is presented again with the screen shown in FIG. 5 bin which Section A includes an indication 101 that the label currentlybeing created does not have an associated file name.

The tabs from Section D of FIG. 5 a are shown at the top of Section C inFIG. 5 b. The left-most tab, labelled “Text” is highlighted. The othertwo tabs are selectable, but not currently selected. The user can addgraphic symbols to the representation 201 of label data to be printedonto a tape. To do this the user touches the middle tab labelled“Insert”. They are then presented with the screen shown in FIG. 7 b.

In FIG. 7 b, the middle tab, labelled “Insert” is highlighted. The othertwo tabs are selectable, but not currently selected. The user touchesarea 371 of Section C and is presented with a list 374 of objects whichare addable to the label data representation 201, as shown in FIG. 7 c.The user selects one of the items on the list by touching the screen ata part which overlays the desired selection. The user can scroll up anddown the list by dragging the slider 373 in the manner previouslydescribed. After selecting “shapes” from this list 374, the user ispresented with another list from which to choose, as shown in FIG. 7 d.This list shows a series of predetermined graphic symbols which areselectable to be added to the label data representation 201, and thusthe label data from which the resultant label will be made. The userselects one of the symbols by touching a part of the screen overlayingthe desired selection, then touches the “Insert” key shown in FIG. 7 e,and then a representation of the chosen symbol is then added to therepresentation 201 of the label data to be printed, as shown in FIG. 7e. In alternative embodiments the “shapes” option may be a sub-set ofthe “symbols” option in list 374 of FIG. 7 c.

The user can then select the tab labelled “Text” and add text to thelabel data representation 201 in the manner described above to arrive atthe situation shown in FIG. 7 f. Thus, it is illustrated that therepresentation 201 of the label data for printing onto a medium such asa tape can include text, symbols and images.

The user can add to the representation 201 data of a predeterminedformat. To do this, the user must again touch the tab labelled “Insert”,and scroll down the presented list to select a type of such data of apredetermined format. If the user, for example, wishes to insert a dateobject into the representation 201, then the user touches a part of thescreen overlying the desired selection as previously described. They arethen presented with the screen shown in FIG. 7 g. The data object hasseveral predetermined possible formats from which the user can select,as shown in FIG. 7 g. To select one of the possible formats, the usertouches a part of the screen associated with the desired selection. Inthis embodiment the part is overlying the desired selection. Theselected object is then inserted into the representation 201 of labeldata to be printed in Section B—see FIG. 7 h.

The user can select an object newly-added to the representation 201 bytouching a part of the screen in Section B associated with the object.In this embodiment the part of the screen to be touched is overlying theobject. The object is then highlighted, as shown in FIG. 7 h. In otherwords, touching part of the screen associated with part of therepresentation of the label data changes an attribute associated withthe label data. In this case that attribute is the highlighted-nature ofthe date in the label data.

With the part of the label data thus selected, the user can alter thevalue of the figures in the date by touching areas 381 to 386 in SectionC of the screen in FIG. 7 h. In other words, touching part of the screenwhich is different to the part of the screen where a portion of arepresentation of label data is displayed changes an attributeassociated with the label data. In this case that attribute is the valueof a figure in the date included in the label data. Although in thepresent example the date is highlighted, the user has decided not totouch any of the areas 381 to 386. The user can return to the homescreen shown in FIG. 7 i by touching area 411 of Section D, aspreviously described. In some embodiments, touching and then maintainingcontact with one of the areas 301 to 306 scrolls through the list ofavailable date values. In some embodiments, the longer a user maintainscontact in this way, the faster the scrolling happens. In someembodiments this is a feature present for each scroll

Once at the home screen, the user is able to change the relativelocation of parts of the representation 201 of the label data, and thusthe relative location of elements of a label to be printed. In FIG. 7 i,the date in the representation 201 is located at a first position withinSection B. The date is an example of a data field. Other items of text,symbols or images may also be considered data fields. The user canselect the date data field by touching part of the screen overlying thedate data field. When the user subsequently touches a first part of thedisplay and maintains contact with the display until releasing contactwith the display at a second part of the display, i.e. the user drags orstrokes their finger or stylus or other input device over the screensurface, the MCU 600 controls the display to display a representation ofthe date data field at a second position within Section B. The result isa display shown in FIG. 7 j. In this embodiment, the “first part” of thedisplay in this case is a point which overlies the displayed date datafield when the date data field is in its first position. In otherembodiments it is conceivable that the data field may be so movable whena user strokes the display between two different parts, and in someembodiments neither of which may overlie the displayed data field.

The text data field containing the wording “Medicine box—Building A” canbe considered a further data field. In FIG. 7 i it is shown at a thirdposition. Once the date data field has been relocated, the text datafield is positioned at a fourth position, in order to accommodate boththe data fields within the width of the tape represented in Section B.

Another feature of embodiments of the present invention will now bedescribed with reference to FIGS. 5 a and 8 a to 8 e.

FIG. 5 a shows the home screen, as previously described. To create alabel according to a predetermined template, the user may touch“template-creation” area 302 in Section C.

The user is then presented with the screen shown in FIG. 8 a, in themanner previously described. A predetermined template comprises a set ofattribute or formatting data which is applicable to label datasubsequently applied to the template.

In alternative embodiments, the template-creation touch area may beincluded on the screen displayed after the user has touched “new” area301 in Section C of FIG. 5 a. In some embodiments a different icon maybe used for the template-creation touch area, such as an icon includingthe word “template”.

The user may select an item from a drop down list which appears afterthe user touches area 391 in Section C of the screen shown in FIG. 8 a.Section A of the screen includes an indication 101 that the displayedscreen relates to templates. In other words, the printer is in a mode inwhich labels from templates can be created. After the user selects anitem from the list, in the manner previously described, they may bepresented with a sub-list from which to choose a sub-template style oftemplate. See FIG. 8 b. When the user selects a template from thesub-list, a preview of the label formatting attributes associated withthe template may be displayed in Section E of FIG. 8 b. The user is thusgiven an indication of the format associated with the template beforecreating a label adhering to that format. The user chooses the templateby touching area 481 of Section D of FIG. 8 b.

The user is then presented with the home screen shown in FIG. 8 c, whichincludes in Section B a representation 201 of the label format data thatwill be applied to label data subsequently added to the representation201. Section A includes an indication 101 of the type of templateselected. The user may add an object or data field to the label data andits representation 201 by touching area 402 of Section D of FIG. 8 c.The user may add text to the label data and its representation 201 bytouching area 401 of Section D of FIG. 8 c. In this latter case, theuser may be presented with a keyboard, as shown in FIG. 8 d, via whichthe user can type text as previously described. In this example the usertypes “Photos Summer 2007”. The user may then touch the area 411labelled “Done” in FIG. 8 d to arrive at the home screen shown in FIG. 8e.

In FIG. 8 e, Section B includes a representation 201 of the label datato be printed onto a tape. The representation 201 includes the labeldata entered by the user via the keyboard and the label data isformatted according to the template previously selected by the user. Theuser can then save the label to the ROM 602 or flash or user memory, ina manner as previously described.

Alternatively or additionally, if the user has already entered text, theprocessor will display the label in accordance with the selectedtemplate. The user can scroll down the options and the displayed labelwill alter in dependence on the currently selected template.

In this embodiment, the processor may be arranged to remove some andpreferably all of the format information and replace that informationwith the format information associated with the template.

Another feature of embodiments of the present invention will now bedescribed with reference to FIGS. 5 a and 9 a to 9 f.

FIG. 5 a shows the home screen, as previously described. A user maycreate a series of labels, each of which comprises a number or letter,wherein the number or letter comprised in one label is consecutive tothe number or letter comprised in the next label in the series. Eachlabel may also comprise data that is included in each of the labels inthe series. Complex examples involving more than one number or letterare also supported. An example of creating such a series of labels willnow be described.

The user may touch area 301 in Section C of FIG. 5 a to start making anew label. The user is presented with a keyboard as previouslydescribed, via which the user can add label data to a label. In thisexample the user enters text which spells “Room” and then enters a spaceafter the text by touching space key 314 on the keyboard, as previouslydescribed. The resultant screen is shown in FIG. 9 a. As for when theuser decided to add a date object, or date data field, to the labeldescribed above with reference to FIGS. 7 a to 7 j, the user touches thetab labelled “Insert” in Section C of FIG. 9 a. The screen shown in FIG.9 b is displayed.

The user touches area 371 of Section C and is presented with a list 374of objects which are addable to the label data representation 201, asshown in FIG. 9 b. The user selects one of the items on the list bytouching the screen at a part which overlays the desired selection. Theuser can scroll up and down the list by dragging the slider 373 in themanner previously described. After selecting “Auto numbering” from thislist 374, the user is presented with another list 396 from which tochoose, as shown in FIG. 9 c. List 396 includes plural data entries,each of which is associated with a particular format of numbering, i.e.a particular format of label data. The user in this example may select“1 2 3” from the list 396, and is then presented with the display shownin FIG. 9 d. By touching the relevant areas of the display in FIG. 9 d,the user is able to configure the format of the objects to be added tothe series of labels. The user may select a series beginning with thenumber “001” and continuing thus: “002”, “003”, and so on. Aftertouching area 411 in Section D labelled “Done”, the user is presentedwith the home screen as shown in FIG. 9 e.

FIG. 9 e shows that the home screen includes a representation 201 of thelabel data to be printed on a first label and subsequent labels. Therepresentation 201 includes two data fields, the first being a text datafield which will be included in label data for the first label and inlabel data for every subsequent label in the series, and the secondbeing a text data field that will vary in the label data for each of therespective labels of the series.

To print the series of labels, the user presses the print button 4000,as described above. Due to the data field object the user selected,namely the “Auto numbering” template, after pressing the print button4000 the user is presented with the screen shown in FIG. 9 f. The useris provided with the means for specifying the number of labels to beincluded in the series, in this example by way of input areas 351 and352 which can respectively be touched to increment and decrement thevalue shown in box 353. The value represents the number of labels forinclusion in the series of printed labels. In this example the user setsthe value in box 353 to “10” and touches area 492.

In some embodiments, touching and then maintaining contact with one ofthe areas 351 and 352 scrolls through the list of available values. Insome embodiments, the longer a user maintains contact in this way, thefaster the scrolling happens.

After touching area 492, a signal is sent from the touchscreen to theMCU 600 and the MCU 600 drives a printing mechanism of the printer, toprint the label data onto a tape as ten consecutive labels. The firstlabel includes the set text “Room” and the first of the auto-numbers inthe series, i.e. “001”, the second label includes the set text “Room”and the second of the auto-numbers in the series, i.e. “002”, and so on.After the label data has been applied to each of the labels in turn, thetape is cut at a position corresponding to the position of an indicator206 shown in section B of FIG. 9 e. Thus, ten individualconsecutively-numbered labels are quickly and simply manufactured.

In other embodiments, the means for specifying the number of labels tobe included in the series is included in the screen shown in FIG. 9 d.Thus, the screen of FIG. 9 d can include input means for selecting thenumber or letter to be included in the first label of the series, andmeans for selecting the number or letter to be included in the lastlabel of the series.

It is advantageous for the selectable input areas provided in some oreach of the above-described screens to be sufficiently large enough thata user may select an input area using one of their fingers.

In alternative embodiments of the label printer of the presentinvention, the printer may include a touchscreen but also have ahardware keyboard. FIG. 10 shows such an embodiment.

When a key 5001 of the hardware keyboard 5000 is pressed by a user, asignal representative of the key pressed is sent to the MCU 600. The MCU600 is thus able to determine which of the keys was pressed, and to actaccordingly.

In FIG. 10, the touchscreen 1000 is displaying the home screen describedabove with reference to FIG. 5 a. The home screen in FIG. 10 a differsfrom that shown in FIG. 5 a in that no tab is provided in Section Dlabelled “Text”. This is because the touchscreen 1000 of the labelprinter shown in FIG. 10 is not configured to display a graphicalkeyboard via which a user may touch input areas to enter letters andnumbers. Instead, a hardware keyboard 5000 is provided for this purpose.Indeed, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 10, none of the screens shown tothe user (corresponding to any of the screens shown in FIGS. 5 a to 9 f)includes a tab labelled “Text”.

All of the operational features described above with reference to FIGS.5 a to 9 e using the touchscreen may be carried out using thetouchscreen of the device shown in FIG. 10, except that the input of anyletters and numbers is actioned by the user pressing respective ones ofthe hardware keys 5001 of the hardware keyboard 5000. In otherembodiments which include a hardware keyboard, one or more of a spacekey, backspace key, enter key, and carriage return key (similar to thoseshown in FIG. 5 b) may be included in the hardware keyboard instead of,or in addition to, the touchscreen. Other keys previously described asbeing represented on a touchscreen may also or instead by provided aspart of the hardware keyboard.

Other alternative embodiments of the present invention may include sucha hardware keyboard 5000 as that shown in FIG. 10 and also include atouchscreen 1000 that is configured to display a graphical keyboard viawhich a user may touch input areas to enter letters and numbers, in themanner described above with reference to FIGS. 5 a to 9 e. Such otheralternative embodiments may include the feature that the user can selectfrom a variety of graphical keyboards, as described above with referenceto FIG. 5 a.

When a user is using a template to create a label, such as in theembodiment described with reference to FIGS. 8 a to 8 e, but by usingthe hardware keyboard 5000 of the embodiment of FIG. 10 rather than agraphical keyboard on the touchscreen, it is preferable that the exampletext should disappear automatically when the user starts to type on thehardware keyboard 5000. In other words, for example the wording “typetext here” shown in FIG. 8 c would immediately be replaced with the textentered via the hardware keyboard 5000.

In one embodiment of the invention the user creates label data by acombined usage of the hardware keyboard and the input areas on thetouchscreen. For some label data, it is time consuming to create thelabel data by the touchscreen only or by the keyboard only. However, ifthe same label data is created by an input method using a combination ofthe touchscreen and the hardware keyboard, the user can create the labeldata in a few easy steps, since text and character entry can be made viathe hardware keyboard, while a screen can be presented to the user onthe touchscreen that includes formatting, template, or special characteroptions.

An example is the creation of an accented character. Creating accentedcharacters only via a hardware keyboard requires a large number ofsteps. The user has to press first a hardware key to select the accentedcharacters mode and subsequently he has to press several navigationbuttons to come to the accented character he wants to input. Pressingthe enter button enters the accented character.

If a combination of the hardware keyboard and touchscreen is used thenumber of steps required to input an accented character can be reducedsignificantly. The user presses a hardware key for accented characters(not shown). The MCU subsequently displays a screen including pluralinput areas, each of which is associated with a different accentedcharacter, on the touchscreen and the user can immediately select thedesired accented character by touching the area on the touchscreen whichcorresponds with the graphics of the desired accented character. Otherexamples are the input of symbols, the selection of a format or atemplate, opening a stored label, etc. Thus, there is no need to keepswitching between a graphical keyboard layout and a screen showing e.g.formatting options on the touchscreen, since the user can access both ahardware keyboard and a screen simultaneously. As the user is operatinga hardware keyboard normally with his fingers, it is advantageous to usea touchscreen with input areas which are selectable with his fingerstoo.

It is to be noted that the values included in any of the lists describedabove may in some embodiments be sorted into alphabetical or numericalorder to allow a user to find a desired value easily. Moreover, in someembodiments it is possible for the user to select a list by touching apart of the scroll bar or the list itself. Any cursor on the screen maythen disappear. By subsequently entering a character (e.g. a letter ofthe alphabet or a number) on a hardware keyboard (or possibly on agraphical keyboard shown on the screen), the list is shifted to theposition where the first character in a value in the list starts withthe character entered. The user can then select an item in the list bytouching a portion of the display overlying that item. This is a furtherexample of how embodiments of the present invention decrease the effortrequired to input label data.

In embodiments of the present invention, when a user touches a pointwithin a portion of the touchscreen at which a representation of labeldata is provided to the user, the MCU initiates a label data input modeand displays a blinking cursor at the point on the screen. When the usersubsequently presses a hardware key on the hardware keyboard, the MCUcontrols the touchscreen to display an item of data associated with thepressed hardware key at the point within the portion. Thus, the cursoracts as an indicator that a user can enter label data for inclusion inthe representation, or as a prompt to the user to enter label data. Sucha mechanism is not limited to only the scenario in which data is to beadded to the representation of label data to be printed. Indeed, asimilar mechanism may be used whenever a user is permitted to enter datavia the hardware keyboard for display at a point on the screen.

It is advantageous for the label printer to be portable and/or capableof being held in the hand of an operative, i.e. is hand held. The labelprinter may be powered by one or more batteries or by a mains source ofenergy.

Embodiments of the invention may be used with continuous tape or die cutlabels. Die cut labels are provided on a continuous backing layer butare discrete, pre-cut labels. The tape or die cut labels may be providedin a cassette or simply on a roll.

In some embodiments, those screens which display options for the user toselect, these may be arranged to show first or more prominently theoptions which have previously been selected. The most frequentlyselected options may be shown first or more prominently. This may bedone in some embodiments which have menus for options, e.g. characterfonts, etc.

In some embodiments, the software will determine which screens orscreens are used more frequently by the user and may change the order inwhich screens are presented to a user. In other words, the hierarchy ofthe screens is dependent on how frequently a particular screen is used.In the alternative or additionally, the selection area for a frequentlyused screen may be made more prominent, moved to a higher level screen,and/or moved within a screen to a different position.

It should be appreciated that by selecting a particular language orcountry option one or more of the following may be changed:

-   -   keyboard layout;    -   language of text;    -   hierarchy of screens;    -   displayed options in a screen;    -   position of options in a screen; and        available options for a user.

The skilled person would appreciate that the home button 3000 discussedabove may comprise a hardware button (e.g. a hardware key), or maycomprise a button displayed on the touchscreen display as a selectableinput area of the display. As discussed above, in some embodiments auser can press home button 3000 to cause the home screen, such as thatshown in FIG. 5 a, to be displayed when any screen is displayed. Inother embodiments, the home button 3000 is not so operable when anyscreen is displayed, but is only operable in this manner when one ofsome of the available displayable screens is displayed. In other words,in some embodiments the home button 3000 is not operable to cause thehome screen to be displayed when a certain screen is displayed.

In the above-described embodiments, the home screen comprises each of:an area selectable by the user to start making a new label; an areaselectable by the user to view an open file screen, via which open filescreen the user is able to select a label file to open in order torecall saved data from memory; an area selectable by the user to editlabel data shown on the home screen; an area selectable by the user whenthey want to save label data to memory; and an area selectable by theuser to initiate altering device settings. In other embodiments, thehome screen may comprise only one or some of these selectable areas.

As discussed above, the home screen is displayed when the label printeris switched on. Thus, in some embodiments, the home screen is the firstscreen displayed when the label printer is switched on. In otherembodiments, a flash screen or other screen may temporarily be displayedbefore the home screen is displayed, when the label printer is switchedon.

The foregoing merely illustrates the principles of the invention.Various modifications and alterations to the described embodiments willbe apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the teachings herein.It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be ableto devise numerous techniques which, although not explicitly describedherein, embody the principles of the invention and are thus within scopeof the invention, as defined by the claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A label printer having: a touchscreen fordisplaying and inputting label data, and comprising at least one inputarea; a hardware keyboard for inputting label data, and comprising atleast one hardware key; and a controller arranged to control a printingapparatus for printing a label in accordance with label information;wherein the label information is derived from a combination of labeldata input via the at least one hardware key of said hardware keyboardand label data input via the at least one input area of saidtouchscreen; wherein at least one hardware key of the hardware keyboardis operable to be selected so as to cause a plurality of differentcharacter formats to be made available; and wherein the at least oneinput area of said touchscreen is operable to select at least one ofsaid plurality of different character formats for each character to beprinted.
 2. A label printer according to claim 1, wherein said labelinformation comprises information defining a character.
 3. A labelprinter according to claim 2, wherein the character comprises anaccented character.
 4. A label printer according to claim 1, whereinsaid label information comprises information defining a symbol.
 5. Alabel printer according to claim 1, wherein said label informationcomprises information defining a format.
 6. A label printer according toclaim 1, comprising a home button which, when operated by a user, causesa home screen to be displayed on the touchscreen.
 7. A label printeraccording to claim 6, wherein the controller is arranged to cause thehome screen to be displayed whenever the home button is operated.
 8. Alabel printer according to claim 6, wherein the home screen comprises atleast one of: an area selectable by the user to start making a newlabel; an area selectable by the user to view an open file screen, viawhich open file screen the user is able to select a label file to openin order to recall saved data from memory; an area selectable by theuser to edit label data shown on the home screen; an area selectable bythe user when they want to save label data to memory; and an areaselectable by the user to initiate altering device settings.
 9. A labelprinter according to claim 6, wherein the home screen is displayed whenthe label printer is switched on.
 10. A method of printing a label,comprising: inputting label data via at least one hardware key of ahardware keyboard of a label printer; inputting label data via at leastone input area of a touchscreen of the label printer; and printing thelabel in accordance with label information, wherein the labelinformation is derived from the combination of the label data input viathe at least one hardware key of said hardware keyboard and the labeldata input via the at least one input area of said touchscreen; whereinthe method comprises causing a plurality of different character formatsor accented characters to be made available subsequent to selection ofat least one hardware key of the hardware keyboard; and wherein themethod comprises operating the at least one input area of saidtouchscreen to select at least one of said plurality of differentcharacter formats or accented characters for each character to beprinted.
 11. A label printer having: a touchscreen for displaying andinputting label data, and comprising at least one input area; a hardwarekeyboard for inputting label data comprising at least one character tobe printed, and comprising at least one hardware key; and a controllerarranged to control a printing apparatus for printing a label inaccordance with label information; wherein the label information isderived from a combination of label data input via the at least onehardware key of said hardware keyboard and label data input via the atleast one input area of said touchscreen; wherein at least one hardwarekey of the hardware keyboard is operable to be selected so as to cause aplurality of different accented characters to be made available; andwherein the at least one input area of said touchscreen is operable toselect at least one of said plurality of different character formats oraccented characters for each character to be printed.
 12. A labelprinter according to claim 11, wherein said label information comprisesinformation defining a character.
 13. A label printer according to claim12, wherein the character comprises an accented character.
 14. A labelprinter according to claim 11, wherein said label information comprisesinformation defining a symbol.
 15. A label printer according to claim11, wherein said label information comprises information defining aformat.
 16. A label printer according to claim 11, comprising a homebutton which, when operated by a user, causes a home screen to bedisplayed on the touchscreen.
 17. A label printer according to claim 16,wherein the controller is arranged to cause the home screen to bedisplayed whenever the home button is operated.
 18. A label printeraccording to claim 16, wherein the home screen comprises at least oneof: an area selectable by the user to start making a new label; an areaselectable by the user to view an open file screen, via which open filescreen the user is able to select a label file to open in order torecall saved data from memory; an area selectable by the user to editlabel data shown on the home screen; an area selectable by the user whenthey want to save label data to memory; and an area selectable by theuser to initiate altering device settings.
 19. A label printer accordingto claim 16, wherein the home screen is displayed when the label printeris switched on.